Dare to Dream
by binx-349
Summary: Is it really you.. or is this just a dream" GSR.
1. Part 1

Dare to Dream – 

"_Are you really there... or is it just my imagination?" GSR_

Disclaimer – It's my B-day tomorrow... maybe I should wish for them, 'cause they aren't mine yet!

I do own a couple of seasons on DVD... but I am also reliably informed, that this does not count.

Rating – PG-13 (just because I'm paranoid.)

Spoilers – Nothing that you haven't all heard about already. Even then it's only hints, nothing more.

A/N – Written to relieve the stress of not getting the new series of CSI until next year. It's a huge pile of fluff and would **never** happen. All mistakes are mine; I keep them as pets and let them roam freely. Reviews make my day; I'm quite new at this and easily pleased.

Grissom stood stiffly in the doorway of his office and sighed. The tedium of the night was beginning to get to him, it was only about half way through shift and already he wanted to go home. This was not normally a problem he faced. Their few simple cases had been handed out, and the pile of paperwork that appeared to be growing a life of its own on his desk was not the most appealing of sights. A frown creased his brow and instead of entering his office he immediately turned back down the corridor. His first thought, to hijack a mug of coffee from Greg's "not-so-secret" store. The quality of the community coffee seemed to be deteriorating daily. Before he even reached the coffee pot however he stopped suddenly, drawn by a slight noise from the corner of the room. He lowered the hand hovering over the pot and rotated his head hesitantly towards the origin of the sound.

It was supposed to be her night off and it surprised him for a second to see her there until he contemplated who he was thinking about. In which case being at work on her night off was not an uncommon occurrence. He raised a trademark eyebrow; no one could surprise him quite like she could. For someone so private to allow anyone to see her asleep, while at her most vulnerable, was not something he expected.

It worried him more than he would ever admit that she had probably not been home since the day before. Although described as unfeeling by many of his colleagues, and not known for his observational skills when it came to the people who worked for him, he did notice when things were not as normal. He simply did not act on most of these thoughts. After so many years of repressing his emotions, he had this form of self-control down to an art. As much as it was often joked that Sara slept at the lab, he was fairly certain she generally went home once every 24 hours at least. When she really did start sleeping in the lab, then that was the time to be concerned.

He hesitated for a second before moving towards her. He stood a couple of feet away and let his gaze wander over her prone form. His eyes rested on her face and drank in the tranquillity he found there. It was rare for him to see her so relaxed. She immediately seemed to tense when he entered a room and a slight grimace crossed his face at this thought. When had things got this bad?

Before really giving himself time to truly consider on the situation he crouched down and ran the back of his fingers across her cheek. "Sara?" he whispered. His first thought was to wake her, but on reflection he decided that if she was sleeping in the break room she obviously needed the rest, and he was not about to let her drive that tired.

As he eased his arms beneath her relaxed body she mumbled a little and wriggled. Her warmth seemed to soak into his arms as he lifted her from the chair and cradled her in his arms.

She seemed to try to cocoon herself into his body. Turning her head into his shoulder and moving her hand onto his arm. His breath hitched in his chest as her fingers unconsciously grazed the skin of his forearm and it took him a couple of moments to get his breathing back in order.

He thanked god for making it such a quiet night as he carried her out of the lab and manoeuvred her into the back of his Tahoe. He didn't pass anyone in the halls and for that was eternally grateful. This was not really a situation he wanted to be passed around the lab grapevine for the next year or so, and he was sure Sara would feel the same way. It was probably not the wisest idea, but by now it was a little late to be backing out.

He sent a page to Catherine telling her he was leaving her in charge, deciding it was probably best not to elaborate. Catherine's curiosity would probably lead her to her own conclusions.

Grissom kept glancing over his shoulder at her sleeping form, she had barely moved since he had laid her down and he doubted that she would. If nothing had woken her thus far it seemed that nothing would. It was proof as to just how tired she must have been. How could he not have noticed this imminent burn-out? He used to be so good at spotting this kind of situation coming a mile off and trying to head it off early. His methods of averting these however often left a little to be desired. Telling her to "get a diversion" was not one of his shining moments but it did have an effect, however detrimental to their already tense relationship.

He doubted Sara would particularly like waking up in a strange house but it was the best strategy he could devise considering he didn't know where her keys were and didn't think it sensible to search her pockets. He parked the SUV and hopped out closing the door as quietly as he could without waking her. He walked to his front door opening it and putting his keys down on the table just inside, before walking back to the car.

Sara was vaguely aware of being moved and the warmth of another body, but chalked it up to a lack of sleep and an overactive imagination. She breathed in deeply and almost squeaked with shock before silencing herself. There was only one person that could be. She would recognise his scent anywhere. Sara could barely count the number of times she had been in this close proximity to him, and yet she was still more aware of him than anyone else. She took another quiet shaky breath and quickly decided this was not something she wanted to end just yet. She tried vainly to memorise the feel of his shirt and his unique scent. How many times had she imagined similar scenarios, only to wake up alone as always?

It was not a fantasy that Sara allowed herself to wallow in very often, due to the simple fact that Grissom had made it quite clear to her that it would never happen. She had always taken for granted that one day she would meet the right man, get married, and have kids, the normal life progression. But recently it seemed that this would be an unattainable scenario for her. The man she loved, either did not, or would not admit, that he loved her. Or wait ...it wasn't that. He knew but wouldn't do anything about it. She didn't know which was worse, thinking he didn't care, or knowing that he did.

It did appear that things were looking up a little on that count. After all, here she was in his arms, not entirely sure where she was being taken, but at this point she honestly didn't care. A smile graced her features, she simply couldn't contain it. She forced herself to relax and keep her eyes closed in the hope that the dream wouldn't end.

The warmth hit her when they entered the house. He kept the lights off and Sara was touched by the gesture despite the fact she was finding it very difficult to concentrate on anything very much. He carried her through the townhouse and nudged his bedroom door open with his foot. He laid her gingerly on his bed, the sheets were warm and she seemed to sink into their depths. Grissom carefully removed her shoes and pulled back the sheets on the opposite side. He eased his hands beneath her once more and slid her between the cool sheets.

He moved back and stood a little way across the room rubbing the back of his ring finger in a nervous gesture. He was finally beginning to realise the impact that his impulsive actions would have. He had a beautiful, young subordinate, in his bed. It had sexual harassment written all over it. He breathed out roughly shaking his head slightly. She had after all asked him out, she wasn't going to hit him when she finally woke up, was she? Quite probably, was the only answer he came up with and he smiled grimly. He would have to deal with that if and when it came to it.

Grissom walked silently to the bed, and leaning over, brushed a couple of strands of hair from her face with his hand and kissed her forehead tenderly. He turned once more and strode towards the door turning once in the doorway and seeing her move, he hesitated only slightly, before continuing on to the kitchen.

Sara touched her forehead lightly where he had kissed it and quivered silently. She turned her face into his pillow and breathed in deeply. This was one night she was unwilling to forget, and she certainly wasn't about to let Grissom forget it either. He had a tendency to forget things that happened between them, ignore or forget anyway. She stretched out in a leisurely fashion running her hand over the crisp sheets and imagining it was more than just empty air beside her. If there was even the slightest chance that he returned her affections, she was going to fight for them tooth and nail.

A/N – See, never gonna happen. 'Cause hell... who sleeps through all that? :-D Also, do you want a "Dare to Dream Pt 2"? I was thinking of doing an evening after scene... I wasn't sure if I should to just leave it at this or not.


	2. Part 2

Dare to Dream Pt II – 

"_If it's not a dream, then why are you here?" GSR._

Disclaimer – The PTB didn't take my birthday wish seriously pout. They still aren't mine.

Spoilers – Same as Pt. 1.

A/N – For everyone who reviewed wanting more. Thank you to all of you for all the encouragement.  More Fluff… do we need it at the moment or what!

(Most is in Sara's POV but I do tend to skip into Grissom's from time to time. Hope it isn't too confusing.)

It took a long couple of seconds for Sara to realise exactly where she was. The apartment was silent and for a moment she thought he must have left her there and gone back to work. She twisted around to look for a bedside clock. It was nearly 3pm. She muttered a curse under her breath and sat up quickly.

How could she sleep that long at a time like this? She groaned quietly taking in her rumpled clothes and found herself wishing she had told him she was awake before, and made him let her go back to work. She ran her fingers through her hair in a nervous gesture and tried to figure out exactly what she should do. Now fully awake the magical, sleepy quality of the night before had dissolved. All she wanted now was to hide. She rubbed her fingers across her eyes and scanned the room. She had always wondered what his room would be like. Although she had been in the rest of his house, this was one room she had not had the pleasure of visiting. It was large and comfortable as it turned out. A little different from the rest of his house which was rather clinical and seemed largely unlived in. It was mainly in fairly neutral grey-blue tones, but the fact there was a carpet and bedding warmed it up considerably. There was a couple of bedside tables one of which had a pile of books on it, by which she identified it as his "side". She could picture him sitting in bed at night reading forensic journals, it was something she did herself and was therefore quite familiar with.

It was at this point she began to think where on earth Grissom had got to. He couldn't be at work, shift was over long ago and everyone needs to sleep sometime. It was at that point her rational mind pointed out that it would be a bit difficult for him, with her in his bed. He certainly wasn't in it with her that was for sure. Why had he even put her in his bed? Did the man not have a spare room? Maybe not, he wasn't known to be particularly sociable; perhaps he just never had visitors and didn't see the need.

She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood slightly unsteadily before considering what she was intending to do. Could she really just walk out of there and pretend nothing had happened? Then a thought hit her. A slow smile spread over her face. Grissom had revealed far more to her about his feelings than he thought she knew about. She had the upper hand in their little game for the time being. Now it was time to play.

She turned to the door and grasped the handle, faltering for a second before gathering her senses and leaving the room.

She found Grissom Sat at his breakfast bar reading the newspaper and sipping a mug of coffee. He was looking slightly sleepy, a look Sara found adorable. His hair was slightly ruffled and his T-shirt and jeans gave him a more comfortable appearance than she was used to. She gave a slight sideways smile at the scene in front of her and began to walk quietly towards the kitchen before her nerve gave out.

"Evening."

Grissom turned slightly surprised by her quiet greeting. "How are you?"

"A little disorientated. But I'll get over it." Sara looked at him but he had immediately looked back down to the paper he was reading. "It's definitely not where I went to sleep. It's a bit like waking up and not being sure whether you're still dreaming. Speaking of…" She paused for a moment before continuing.

"…Why was I in your bed?"

Grissom looked up his expression slightly worried. He got up slowly and walked towards the cupboards removing a mug from the shelf nearby.

"I didn't think you would appreciate waking up next to a red-kneed tarantula and several cockroaches." Sara gave a wry smile.

"Uh… yeah, not first thing that's for sure. Not really used to waking up next to bugs. Then again, not really used to waking up in someone else's bed."

Grissom's head jerked up from where he was watching the coffee at her comment and Sara met his eyes with a barely contained smile.

Grissom was still slightly nervous, what was she hinting at with that comment? He had had a fairly sleepless night trying to figure out his next move. It seemed he could never quite recover quickly enough to formulate comprehensive answers to her questions. It was rather like preparing for an exam, in the best, but most nerve wracking way possible. It was strange how simply being alone with her could turn him into a stammering wreck, from his normally fairly self-assured personality. He tried very hard not to question the reasons behind it, but failed miserably. He knew exactly how he felt and he had the distinct feeling that she knew too, and as she had told him already, she knew what to do about it. Evidently it was just his issues causing the apparent communication blockage between them.

He made his way back towards her warily, holding a mug of coffee out towards her as if a peace offering. She wrapped her hands around the heat of the mug and tried to ignore the way he nearly dropped it as their fingers touched. Sara wasn't entirely sure whether to be insulted or not at his hasty retreat. She chose not to comment on it, but her previous smile turned a little pensive. The only thing that kept her hopes alive was the fact that he evidently felt the same rush of desire as she did. She could observe the withdrawal in his eyes, as well as physically, by now he was halfway across the room.

It was time to turn a little pro-active. "So you never really graced my question with a sensible answer." She paused for a moment for the unspoken question to settle in before continuing. "You could have just left me in the break room, taken me home, put me in your spare room… among a million other things…but you didn't. Why?"

Her tone left little room for argument. Getting Sara angry was one of the things he had been hoping to avoid. He had on several occasions had front row seats when something got to Sara, and he had always been relieved that her temper had never been entirely directed at him.

"It seemed the best idea at the time." He murmured, he then studiously avoided her eyes after this comment and his gaze settled on her mouth instead. It was said without any qualms, but Sara had her doubts about the honesty of the statement.

She huffed a quiet laugh at this point, and shook her head slightly. He really wasn't very good at explaining his actions sometimes. In fact, make that most of the time. Sometimes it was endearing, other times agonizingly frustrating. This was one of those times when she wasn't entirely sure how to categorise it.

She moved slowly towards him. It felt a bit like approaching an animal, one you are trying very hard not to frighten away before you have a good hold on it and she chuckled inwardly at the analogy. He was leaning against the counter on the other side of the kitchen clutching his coffee like a lifeline. He didn't seem nervous per se but he was definitely uncomfortable with the situation.

Grissom was starting to think that perhaps Sara knew a little more than she was letting on. She hadn't been this confident around him in quite a while. He forced himself to put his coffee down and turned back to meet her eyes. For a long moment nothing was said. By this point they were standing less than a metre apart. They had barely touched and already his skin was tingling. He knew there was a reason he had never allowed their relationship to develop, he wasn't sure just how much control he really had, over anything, himself included. Grissom had always liked to keep a tight control on things in his life, it was one of the reasons his hearing loss had affected him as it did. He could no more control it than the weather. Trying to ignore it had been a subtle way of denying he had a problem and, what good had it done him in the end? It was a way he chose of dealing with various problems, had it ever really worked? The answer was a resounding no. Sara was another of these situations that he had not handled particularly well, for precisely these reasons. He had since learnt that this ignoring the problem never came off as planned. It didn't just go away.

That moment lost in each others eyes seemed to last forever. It took Sara several seconds to realise that she had not said anything in reply to his comment. She decided in the end that the best policy would simply be to not to say anything. The best quote as far as she was concerned was the one that said _"actions speak louder than words."_ As far as their non-relationship went that was entirely true, or at least she hoped so. None of it had ever been expressed in words and Sara honestly had very little faith in their efficacy. You could say anything; it didn't necessarily mean you meant it.

She continued moving towards him, all the while expecting him to back away. When he didn't move she stopped, still watching the apprehension in his deep blue eyes. His hands carefully moved to rest on her hips, the hesitation still showed that he expected her to stop him, she had no such thoughts. It didn't mean that she was going to initiate anything; it would be entirely in his control. It had been all her up to this point, time for someone else to take the lead while she sat back and enjoyed where it took her. She could feel the warmth from his hands, his fingers stroking the skin. It was all she could do not to melt into a heap at his feet. Sara could feel herself shaking slightly, and fervently hoped that Grissom was oblivious. Her senses were in overload, even the gentle touch of his hands making her jittery. In her mind she chided herself slightly for letting herself fall for him so far, and for having absolutely no self control at this point. His hands had migrated up her back, now running delicately over her collarbone and neck.

When his lips eventually touched hers it was tentative, his lips were soft and Sara couldn't help but return the kiss.

She gasped slightly as his fingers trailed down her spine to the small of her back. Her hands involuntarily moved to the back of his neck, wrapping her arms round his shoulders, and pulling herself further into the heat of his body. She tipped her head back and deepened the kiss, willing herself to fuse into his essence. Sara commenced raking her fingers through his hair, her breathing shallow. Grissom suddenly seemed to make a choice; he grasped her hips again, lifting her onto the surface which had been behind him. She wrapped her legs around his waist pulling him closer. "Sara". His harsh whisper pulled her out of her desire laden reverie. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"I've waited for this longer than you know. There is no way I'd back out now." She was surprised to find a similar timbre in her own voice. "I always told you I knew what to do, didn't I?" He shook his head slightly with a guarded smile and quietly replied.

"Yes… you did."

A/N_: "__Love is when you look into someone's eyes,  
and see everything you need." –_

(Just because I **love** that quote, makes me feel all tingly. I'm such a romantic. G )


	3. Part 3

Dare to Dream Pt III - 

_"When you dare to dream, dare to follow that dream, dare to suffer through the pain, sacrifice, self-doubts, and friction from the world, you will genuinely impress yourself." -Dr. Laura Schlessinger _

Spoilers: As before.

Disclaimer: I don't own them and it seems that I never will. Darn it.

Rating – Upgraded to R.

**(Re-uploaded to sort out some minor issues).**

He leaned back in towards her, their lips meeting in a frenzied rush. Desire once restrained was now left seemingly unchecked. Her legs were still wrapped around his waist pulling him into her as closely as she could reasonably manage. Strong hands which had been cradling her face were making swift progress down her back, caressing the bare skin between the top of her jeans and her shirt. By now his deft fingers, were tracing unknown patterns on her lower back. Her skin felt almost on fire wherever he touched.

Sara could barely concentrate on this fact as she was still drowning in the sensations created by the mixture of his proximity, and her heightened senses. His warm hands were pushing beneath her shirt and she instinctively moved in closer to his body, wrapping her arms firmly around the back of his neck and breathing in deeply. Intoxicating herself with his scent. Her fingers unconsciously rubbed lazy circles around the back of his neck, mimicking his own movements on her back.

Sara had barely noticed anything about her surroundings until she found herself practically pinned against the kitchen wall, and couldn't help the grin that emerged at the situation. How many times had this kind of fantasy played out in her head? Too many to count; and so far it lived up to her expectations entirely.

This was the kind of loss of control she had always; dreamed of, where he would forget all the reasons that he had fabricated for why they couldn't be together. When he would cease to think, and simply feel, it was a novel concept for him to disengage his overactive brain even for a moment. Yet here that moment was, and she was not about to let is pass her by.

Sara pulled away a short distance, and steadily met Grissom's worried gaze. He stiffened noticeably, resting his hands lightly on her hips. "You know, this could be a whole lot more comfortable." Sara murmured quietly. The fear dropped from his gaze immediately, he smiled gently and raised an eyebrow. This gesture was returned with a quirked smile from the brunette in front of him.

"You are always right." He murmured into her ear, his warm breath fanning the side of her face.

Grissom backed away a little and grasped her wrist lightly guiding her towards the door. Sara followed meekly, she was quite happy to be submissive for the moment. Not that she thought for a moment it would last long at all. She couldn't help but respond to his encouragement. It was the ultimate motivation.

Upon re-entering his bedroom everything seemed to slow considerably, Grissom stopped and turned back to face her. He trailed a thumb over her bottom lip, gently tracing her features with his fingers. He lightly kissed the side of her neck and ran his fingers through her hair, the way he touched her was almost reverent. As if she were a delicate artifact he was attempting to examine, and preserve.

Her name escaped from his lips on a ragged breath. The quiet strength of the desire in his voice stirred her, touching something in her she feared had been lost many years before. She gazed into his eyes hoping to portray more in that simple act than her words ever could. She gave him her trust.

His hands slid down her back slipping beneath her shirt, pushing it up slowly and removing it, her fingers were presently performing a very similar task with equal efficiency on the buttons of his shirt. Her hands moved over his chest up to his shoulders sliding the shirt off them. Her hands stilled for a moment feeling the masculine strength in his stance, the pure heat that radiated from his skin. Her legs felt rather like jelly and she was not entirely sure how long she could remain upright without a little support.

She slowly unclasped the button of her jeans with shaking hands, and slid them down her legs, pushing them off and kicking them a few feet away. His eyes followed every one of her movements hungrily before he moved towards her encircling her waist with his hands and uniting their lips once more. Sara felt her legs hit the edge of the bed just a few moments later and let herself be pushed gently back against the mattress. Sara propped herself up on her elbows and watched as Grissom hastily divested himself of his slacks; taking in his obviously aroused body with barely veiled delight. Her eyes raked his body as she pushed herself up into a half sitting position, her tongue flicking out to wet her bottom lip slightly in anticipation.

He leaned over her stroking his hand over her shoulders and down her back undoing her bra as he went. Hooking his arm beneath her back he drew her towards him running one hand over her silky skin while using the other to support her back. Her skin tingled everywhere he touched. The delicacy of his hands running over her stomach with such reverence made her heart swell with the emotions she felt. Sara pressed both her hands flat to his chest pressing tantalizing kisses between them, and over his collarbones. He had subtly removed her underwear, and slipped a couple of fingers into her. Stroking and testing meticulously. He rained kisses over her chest caressing her liberally with his lips.

Her back arched slightly as she attempted to press herself even closer towards him.

Her muscles fluttered around his fingers as she gasped his name into his shoulder. A brief triumphant smile touched the corners of his mouth as he pulled his hand away.

Grissom pressed his mouth to hers in a sensuous caress trying to communicate all that he was feeling in every minute gesture. He pulled back to watch her, her eyes were closed and he watched the play of emotions across her face with rapt attention. Her mouth was very slightly open and her breathing shallow. Sara could feel his eyes on her as if by a sixth sense. A lovely shiver ran through her body. She had always expected it might be an uncomfortable experience, but his quiet scrutiny in itself was intensely intoxicating, and she barely thought about the awkwardness she would normally feel at such an intimate appraisal.

An involuntary groan escaped her lips as he thrust into her for the first time. As he built up a fairly steady rhythm she grasped vaguely at his shoulders. The exquisite feelings created quite overriding any sense of logic she may have maintained up to this point. She opened her eyes only to meet his blue-grey gaze as all the sensations condensed to a peak. It was akin to a meeting of like souls when she locked with his gaze, the depth of emotion she found there was more than she had ever imagined she would see, and it made the moment all the more special. He leaned down to brush his lips across her forehead before kissing her lips again.

He clutched at her trembling body, pulling her yet closer into him and spooning her against his body. Sara sighed contently rubbing her thumb over the back of his hand as it lay draped over her stomach. Yes, she smiled lazily; it was definitely worth the wait.


End file.
